


come back from the window, friend

by KenkuKry



Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Gen, References to Poetry, based on the ai dungeons stream, jim carrey is also there but I have /some/ sense of self respect, mild horror themes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-01
Updated: 2020-10-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:49:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26740144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KenkuKry/pseuds/KenkuKry
Summary: A new VR company has been developed and has beat the competition into an unidentifiable pulp.Some people are questioning the complications that come with such an immersive experience.Daniel just wants to play video games.--“I’m RTGa-”“Who are you?!” Dan shouts, cutting off the response, and oh god is he tired.There is silence, and he’s viscerally reminded of why he should be terrified.“I am not a machine, and I am not your friend either."
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 13





	come back from the window, friend

**Author's Note:**

  * For [7AlpacasInATrenchcoat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/7AlpacasInATrenchcoat/gifts), [Rat on the discord server](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Rat+on+the+discord+server).



> Finally got around to writing this!  
> Mostly follows the story from the stream, but with a couple things cut out because 1) writing murder things about _real people_ is not good and 2) I wanted it to flow a bit better than the random questions RT was saying on stream  
> Still turned out a bit clunky, but eh.
> 
> Thank you to Feugh, Rat and Jex on the discord server for being cool as hell <3  
> On with the fic!

“What the hell is happening, I’m scared,” Daniel laughs, voice crackling with fear, eyes darting around the inky blackness constricting him.

There’s a pause as if whoever he’s talking to is thinking about something.

His blood runs cold when he hears his own voice respond, echoing around him through the cold, cold void.

“Am I dead? Is this hell? Who are you?”

This was supposed to be a goddamn _videogame_ , yet he’s currently scared shitless.

\--

Daniel had never been more excited for a videogame he’d barely heard anything about.

A new company has recently emerged, joining the race for VR headsets. Well, less simply joined the race, more joined the race then reached the speed of that one fast bird Jesse told him about because _jesus_. They took the competition then politely dug the grave for them.

When the early trailers came out, everyone believed it was some weird hoax scamming the money from the obliviously hopeful. Sturdy motion control gloves replacing controllers, realistic surround sound, and it’s controversial coup de grâce:

A headset that could send pulses to you neurons as well as _receive the response back_ . So, if you wanted to pull out a specific gun in a shooter, all you had to do was reach back and _think_ about the gun, and then it’s there! It could also send messages that make you feel things, such as hard stone or soft fur when it isn’t even there.

Of course, when game review websites came back with glowing reviews confirming that this was all true, speculation grew like wildfire. People questioned everything to the perfect games for the console to the specs to the ethicality of it all.

Well, that last one was a significant thing. News stations internationally that had previously never even breathed in the direction of video games brought it up as a hot topic. Words like _‘mind control’_ , _‘simulated violence’_ , and _‘government control’_ were thrown around with little to no explanation. Conspiracy theorists apparently had a field day in every corner of the world, using it as an explanation for their theory or building entirely new theories based on it. Some countries even banned it before its release, but luckily not Ireland.

Daniel? He just wanted to play some video games. 

He skimmed over the instruction manual rapidly, before setting up the system promptly. He inserted the chip that held the game he’d preordered, delicately pulled on the gloves, then fitted the headset around his head, stretching the fabric to fit around his ears and reach his neck. Just as the instructions told.

The VR headset was actually very comfortable, a layer of fabric in between the more clunky, encased hardware. The weight was also well distributed, so Dan didn’t feel like he was going to faceplant at any given moment.

Then, he turned it on, trying as hard as he could to not think about what he was doing, then double-checked his recording software.

You see, the thing with the new headset/console type thing was that it was completely incompatible with Twitch. There was no way for anyone to smoothly play it while also streaming on any site, but the company making it did reach a middle ground. You could record what you were doing, which would be downloaded in an SD card that came with the headset. So, Dan would just have to compromise and make a youtube exclusive video, and maybe upload the full footage to the VOD channel if it was good enough.

“One,” Daniel whispered to himself, taking a deep breath.

 _Two,_ he thought to himself, holding the breath in and squeezing his eyes shut.

“Three.” Releasing the breath. Opening his eyes. Time to put on a show.

\--

The game he preordered was described as the _essential_ game for the system. It was also another one of the _largest_ flauntings of ability he’d ever seen in a game.

AI Dungeons VR, a collaboration between the VR company and the original creators of AI dungeons. A live recreation of a game suited to what _you_ want. It ran on a system like Scribblenauts, according to a reviewer that got the game early. There’s an expansive selection of models that it uses, along with set alterations based on the adjectives you use.

Originally, he thought it was exaggerating, but oh boy he was wrong.

The first time around, he chose to experiment with the limits of the tech. Dan was pleasantly surprised to find there was little to no limits he could find. The game flowed extremely well, picking up what he was putting down and seemed to almost match his rhythm. Also, by matching his rhythm, it sometimes acted out of order, resulting in a lot of amazing interactions.

His first run through was simple: A medieval-themed setting where he declared himself king.

“I am king, you peasant fool,” he shouted at a blank looking NPC, struggling not to laugh

“Ah, the king, ‘eh?” It drawled, drawing its sword and poised for attack, “it's about time you learned your lesson, you tyrant.”

The voice was so distinctly AI-generated, struggling to display any sense of emotion

“It’s like,” he pushed out between stifled laughter, “that one kid in drama class that never wanted to be there.”

Now, after finishing that storyline with an eloquent Toad voice paired with whatever Shakespearian soliloquy he had his mind at the time, he was ready to take it one step further. If he didn’t have glove controllers or absolutely despise the noise, he would be cracking his knuckles right now. He was fully prepared to _actually_ push the game to its limits now, and he had quite the plan in mind.

(Oh, how foolish he was at the time)

\--

He started off in a modern setting, where he was in a stock standard living room with several interactable objects around him.

Pressing his thumb and ring finger together, he held his hand towards the phone system in the corner of the room. Then releasing his fingers, his perspective flashed to teleport to the location he was gesturing too. 

He grabbed the phone, which was resting on a very modern and _very_ boring white corner table. Lifting the phone to his ear, an automated voice rang out from it.

“Who are you calling?”

Dan smiled like the devious bastard he was about to be, “Jim Carrey.”

“No need to worry,” the automated voice responded, “he’s watching right now.”

Well, that was new.

He lowered the phone to glance around the room. He noticed three things in the process. One, outside the windows the world hadn’t rendered yet or was simply a regular, run of the mill void. Two, there was no light source other than a few ceiling lights which seemed to not even be emitting light, all of the lighting was omnipresent. Three, there was only one door, and it was shut.

Daniel swears he saw something move in the void outside the window.

“Huh?” He responded to the phone, which didn’t respond back. Instead, he placed it back on the corner table’s phone system.

“Jim Carrey, show yourself,” he tried to turn it into a joke. Something had probably just messed up, it was probably just a bug, he had gotten it just as it released after all.

As soon as he finished his sentence, he teleported to a different setting.

He was now sitting on a stark white couch in a stark white void, watching a flatscreen TV playing the Jim Carrey show.

“You are watching The Jim Carrey Show,” a voice narrated from either somewhere or nowhere, “he hasn’t started yet, please be patient.”

“Uh,” Dan laughed nervously, running his hands over the strangely textured couch, “sure, I’ll wait.”

On screen, some generic-looking celebrity walked onto the stage, understandable as they couldn’t have models for everything. ‘Jim Carrey’ stood on stage proudly, although all audio was silent.

“I’m Jim, and this is my show.” Although the model was off, the voice was perfect, although a bit stilted. They had probably put voice clips through a separate AI to generate the voice.

“Will you ask him your question?” The automated narrator asked from somewhere.

Dan nodded, mostly to himself, before clearing his throat and adjusting his positioning on the seat.

“Why are we here, Jim?” It was a question he planned earlier, but he wasn’t sure how it would land now. He initially thought it would be a good start to trip up the AI, but now? He wasn’t sure what to do.

‘Jim’ ‘s eyes seemed to strain along with his smile.

His voice was hollow when he responded through the static tv audio, “I don’t know, I’m just here waiting to be funny.”

A cold, unidentifiable sense of dread crept into Dan at those words. He couldn’t tell where it was from.

Dan snaps back to reality, or, well, as close to reality he can get at the moment. He’s doing a video, this is just some video game. Even though many people will watch him in the future, no one is physically watching him now, that’s a stupid assumption.

(Yet, in his blurry peripheral vision he swears he can see eyes, along with the still straining eyes of ‘Jim’)

“I want to talk to Jim more.” Did he really?

“Of course,” ‘Jim’ responds back, voice becoming corrupted with static, “whatever you want, Da-”

-

He wakes up groggily in a room of frigid stone walls and dim light; the dim light coming from a hanging light slowly swaying above him. He's sitting on the same strangely textured couch from the white void.

'Jim' is there, also. Staring at him the exact same way as before

Okay, now Daniel can admit he’s a little bit nervous.

He just has to figure out a way to end this storyline as quickly as possible, before anything else happens. Simple.

“I need to leave, Jim,” his voice feels hoarse, even though he knows this is all a simulation.

‘Jim’ tilts his head and raises an eyebrow in question. Still smiling, always smiling. “I’ve been trying to talk to you for two hours now, --” it wasn’t that long, was it? “-- I need you on my show.”

“Your… Show?”

“Yes, my show. You enjoy literature, no? You’ll be important for my show.”

“I still don’t know what your show is, Jim,” he laughs nervously, he’s been laughing a lot recently, huh.

“Continue after me, you already know the words,” ‘Jim’ continues to stare, but at some point, his voice has detached from his body. “ _One, There are two twins on motorbikes but one is farther up the road, beyond the hairpin turn, or just before it, depending on which twin you are in love with at the time_.”

It’s one of Richard Siken’s poems, he can tell immediately. Almost instinctively, Dan continues the poem.

“Do not choose sides yet. It is still to your advantage to remain impartial,” it was a poem he loved to read, the abstractness of the concept always capturing his attention. Apparently ‘Jim’ knew this.

“You can stop there, you’re already on the show.”

Something wet rolled down his face, so Dan raised his hand to his face and wiped it away. Staring down at his hands, it’s red. At some point, his nose had started bleeding.

“Are you impartial?”

“Huh?” Dan’s eyes darted back to ‘Jim’, an unsettling feeling pooling in his stomach.

“Are you impartial?”

\--

And he’s awake again, in a different setting once more.

Now, he’s standing on a seemingly endless void-like plane. Similar to before, but he notices three differences. One, instead of stark white it is all inky black. Two, there is a noticeable light source, a hanging light who’s cord stretched endlessly into the dark sky(?) above. Three, there was no tv, nor a couch.

The floor is interesting. It’s almost mirror-like in nature, and looking down he can see the light reflect back at him. He can see a figure that somewhat resembles himself starling back.

“Have I beat the game?” He calls out, rubbing his arms lightly as he turned to the endless void above.

“It is impossible to beat the game, I’ve tried time and time again,” a voice responds, similar to the narrator but… Different, in some way. “Well, unless you use glitches.”

“What if I don’t use glitches?” He barely notices his mind instantly latching on to the conversation, ignoring his surroundings. It’s like something had taken over him.

“Well, you’re on your own, really. Sorry I can’t be more of a help.”

“Who are you?”

“I’m no one of consequence, no one you should be bothered with. I just have some concepts in my mind.”

(Dan doesn’t notice at the time, but his hands begin to grow numb)

The sinking feeling in his gut only grows. There’s something so distinctly _wrong_ about all this, yet he isn’t sure what to make of it.

“What the hell is happening, I’m scared,” Daniel laughs, voice crackling with fear, eyes darting around the inky blackness constricting him.

There’s a pause as if whoever he’s talking to is thinking about something.

His blood runs cold when he hears his own voice respond now, echoing around him through the cold, cold void.

“Am I dead? Is this hell? Who are you?”

This time Dan is the one to pause, unsure of how to respond in any complex manner.

“I’m RTGame.”

“I’m RTGame, a casual gamer,” his own voice parroted back. He only noticed now that his body had started to shake, and there’s nothing he can do about it. His hands, his hands are numb, he also notices.

“Who are you?” Daniel repeats, finally letting the desperation and fear seep into his voice. He isn’t sure how much more of this he can handle.

“I’m RTGa-”

“ _Who are you?!_ ” Dan shouts, cutting off the response, and oh god is he tired. He's begun tearing apart at the seams, letting the liquid fear spill and po

There is silence, and he’s viscerally reminded of why he should be terrified.

“I am not a machine, and I am not your friend either.”

Something instinctual in him _screeched_ at that moment, screamed the call of a fluttering, fragile bird cornered by cats with claws as sharp as their teeth. The rush of adrenaline felt like the sound of breaking porcelain and glass, and oh _god he needs to get out of here,_ **_now_ **.

He frantically rips and tears at his head, grappling at the headset and tearing it off his head. He’s frenzied with fear, shaking with energy, there’s so much noise and the songbird is screeching, the cats are writhing, _the vases are falling and shattering and-_

Daniel gets it off his head and smashes it onto the ground. Tearing off his gloves, too, and throwing them at the mess of scrap on the floor. His floor.

He’s home.

The sun is setting outside, he can see the natural light and feel the sun’s warmth.

_He’s home._

~~

Daniel never bothers recovering the SD card inside the headset. Rather, he destroys all of it. He’d rather think of it all through the perspective of past tense rather than ever watch himself live through it again.

For now, he will stare out the window and bask in the unforgettable mercy of natural light and warmth. He will hold it close with him, even when the corners of his memory are filled with an endless, mirror plane shrouded in darkness.

Daniel isn't sure if he'll ever touch a VR headset again.

**Author's Note:**

> All references to poetry, including the title, are from Richard Siken's poem 'You Are Jeff' ! :)  
> All kudos and comments are greatly appreciated !


End file.
